Jayde Scott started this
off brilliantly. Literally, I was almost breathless reading the opening
chapters. A young woman arrives to work as the housekeeper in a creepy, remote
mansion for a man who’s never around when she’s awake. The writing was good,
the witty conversation great. And then it went kind of mushy after that. Not
necessarily in a bad way, but just not up to the same strength as the
beginning.
The storyline of A Job
from Hell is pretty solid if not basic, with a few original twists and
characters: turns out Amber won a paranormal prize she wasn’t aware of winning,
and the problem is, she’s mortal. Enter Adrian, the mystery employer, who’s
determined to save Amber and win her heart, if he doesn’t kill her first.
Stuff I loved: smart
one-liners, great humor and snappy conversations. This was definitely Jayde
Scott’s strength. There were also a few unusual characters in the mix,
including Satan’s daughter, and a species called the Shadows that I really want
to know more about.
Stuff I didn’t like as
much: I already mentioned the mush. I’ve got nothing against romance, but I
have to admit to a tendency I have: I start rolling my eyes when a story relies
heavily on soul mates, predestined love and repeated declarations of undying
adoration, unless it’s very well done. And even then, I don’t want to read
about it every few pages.
Amber kept flipping
back and forth between “No way can I stay with him, he’s way too dangerous” to
“I’d give up everything to save him”. Seriously, make up your mind. And there
were a few inconsistencies, like how does a vampire wake up with his heart
beating rapidly? Being dead kinda implies his heart no longer works, right?
But that’s just me. I
actually think it was a decently written story, despite the bits I rolled my
eyes at, and I know other more romantically inclined readers will enjoy it.
